When you’re tasked with car shopping, you have a lot of choices to make. And if you’re big into performance capabilities, one of those choices is which drive type is going to best suit your needs. There are four main ones – front-wheel drive, rear-wheel drive, four-wheel drive, and all-wheel drive. Toyota of N Charlotte is here to explain the differences between them so you can decide which you prefer and narrow your selection with ease.
What are the four main drive types?
Let’s start with the most common – front-wheel drive. This drive type is the one you’ll find on most of our N Charlotte Toyotas! In front-wheel drive vehicles, the acceleration and power are sent to the front wheels. You’ll also find that the engine and transmission are close to the front wheels, and all of this works in tandem to get you better fuel efficiency as well as better traction. You’ll find this drive type in cars like the Toyota Corolla, Toyota Camry, and Toyota RAV4.
Next, rear-wheel drive. This type of drive is usually found in vehicles that are geared toward a more intense performance – like racing, towing, hauling, or off-roading. That’s why you’ll usually find it in vehicles like our N Charlotte Toyota 86, Toyota Tundra, and Toyota Tacoma. Typically, it’s used in larger vehicles like trucks and SUVs because the power is sent to the rear wheels, giving you a bit more acceleration as well as more power. The engine and transmission are more balanced with the driveshaft in these cars, which also means better handling and more control.
What about four-wheel drive? This drive type is best suited to drivers who like to take things off the pavement, so you’ll find it in vehicles designed for off-road adventures like the Toyota Tacoma and Toyota 4Runner. Four-wheel drive allows power to be sent to all four wheels, which means you’ll have better control and traction on tricky terrain. You’ll find low and high ranges; low range is best used for climbing steep surfaces, which high range is best for situations like rain and snow where traction is limited.
Finally, all-wheel drive. Like four-wheel drive, this drive type delivers power to all four-wheels. However, it comes in both part-time and full-time modes. When in part-time mode, your N Charlotte Toyota will send power to all four wheels as needed, but not all the time. When in full-time mode, power is sent to all four wheels continuously. Vehicles like the Toyota Sienna and Toyota Highlander often offer this feature because it improves traction and handling on slippery surfaces, like snow or ice.
Shop all of them at Toyota of N Charlotte today
Have questions or feel like you’re ready to shop? Call Toyota of N Charlotte today! We’re open and ready for you at (704) 875-9199. We’ve got plenty of different drive types in stock to get you behind the wheel of the car that best suits your drive time needs!
